Today, for the #HistFicThursdays blog, I'm delighted to be hosting Ellen Rachlin with a guest post about her book brilliant upcoming book Enheduanna's Song from the Sands , as part of her Coffee Pot Book Club tour! Read on to find out more about the writing journey with Enheduanna and what inspired Ellen to write her story. But first, let's meet the book... Blurb Discover the untold story of Enheduanna, the world’s first named author, as she navigates power, betrayal, and divine destiny in ancient Mesopotamia. A mesmerizing fusion of history, myth, and female leadership that challenges how we see the past—and ourselves. A high priestess dethroned. A rebel with a dangerous plan. One empire hanging by a thread. When Enheduanna is named High Priestess of Ur, her connection to the gods makes her a target. Lugalanne’s coup strips her of robes, power, and home, casting her into the perilous underworld. There, amid forests of shadows and treacherous trials, she discovers that d...
For NaNoWriMo last year, I wrote a book called The Stonemason's Crown . This was in part inspired by a discovery I made whilst poring over a map. It was not an old map, but a map of old things using LiDAR technology. For Christmas, my sister got me a copy of that map, printed on metal and zoomed in on the very spot where my story was set. Maps give an amazing insight. Not only do they point out landmarks which are sometimes long gone and forgotten, they also show how people reacted with - and believed in - the world where they lived. Where would our imaginations be without etched sea serpents, or "Here Be Dragons" on the edges of these documents? Time was I would only read books which had a map in them. I've got a little bit more accepting now, but I still get a real buzz as a reader to find a beautiful map tucked into the opening pages of a book. My dad loves maps. Consequently, I have always found them fascinating. He has quite a collection, some which are hundreds...